BENSON, NC - At its Annual Meeting held in Goldsboro, North Carolina, the NC Sweetpotato Commission elected a new slate of officers.

Each year the board of directors has the privilege of selecting a recipient of the NC Sweetpotato Commission Distinguished Service Award, a press release stated. This award is to be presented to an individual (or individuals) who has rendered outstanding service to North Carolina’s sweetpotato industry. For his contribution to the NC Sweetpotato Industry, Commission and its growers, the 2025 Distinguished Service Award was proudly presented to John Cooper, President of Connect C, LLC.

John Cooper has over 45 years of experience working as a corporate CEO and government agency administrator. John served in the administrations of three United States Presidents. He served as State Executive Director of the North Carolina Farm Service Agency from 1981 to 1992, under Presidents Ronald Reagan and George H.W. Bush. In April 2001, John was appointed by President George W. Bush to serve as the State Director of USDA (U.S. Department of Agriculture) Rural Development for North Carolina.

While work for The North Carolina Sweetpotato Commission was “ad hoc” during the work on the ‘cooperative issue’, NCSC was John’s first ever registered client as a lobbyist in 2010. Since then, he has worked tirelessly to see the Commission succeed. John was instrumental in securing a recurring international marketing allocation from the NC General Assembly, as well as the $5M G.A. grant to combat GRKN and, most recently, an additional recurring marketing allocation of $500k, annually.'

At this same meeting, the NC Sweetpotato Commission elected a new slate of officers. Some have served on the board in past years, whereas others are new faces looking to make their mark in the industry.

The 2025-2026 Officer Slate is as follows:

1. Rob Hill of Tull Hill Farms, who served as the 2024 President was re-elected to another term.
2. Brent Leggett of Leggett Farming Partnership, a past President of the commission, was elected to the Board of Directors and elected to the seat of Vice President.
3. Thomas Joyner of Nash Produce was selected to serve another term as Secretary/Treasurer.

The remaining NCSC Board of Directors include:

• Richard Anderson, Anderson Farms
• José Pepe Calderon, Barnes Farming/FarmPak
• Sarah Carraway, Lancaster Farms
• Rob Glover, Rob Glover Farms
• Kim LeQuire, Kornegay Family Farms & Produce
• Annette Starling, Millstream Farms
• Scott Sullivan, Sullivan Farms
• Micheal Wood, J. Roland Wood Farms
• Lyn Vick, Vick Family Farms

"Recognizing 2024 was a rough growing season, the Board is looking for a successful sweet year,” remarks Michelle Grainger, Executive Director of the NCSC “Looking ahead, the industry is optimistic that new relationships will help to push consumption, and position our state as a dependable and reliable source—known for its quality and consistency” concludes Grainger.